Long term sick/Withheld holiday pay/Voluntary Redundancy. Can I get them to pay my outstanding holiday pay separately?

[geishagirl257]

Hello,

 

A newbie seeking advice here.

Background

I've been working for a public sector employer now for about 7.5 years. We are all too familiar with appalling management standards set by our employers and I was somehow expected to be a miracle worker with very little budget and disagreements between to sets of management teams about what key aims, responsibilities and targets for my post were I ran myself ragged until I succumbed to Chronic Fatigue in June 2010.

 

I was off for 5.5 months before returning to work on a phased return in Dec 2010 under Occupational Health but within a couple of months of my returning, my psychopathic manager piled on the workload, subjected me to harrassments of various types and I succumbed again in March 2011 this time with Stress and Depression.

 

Rather than following the Stress at Work protocols from Health & Safety exec, ensuing investigations proceeded instead took me to grievance which ultimately was not uphold (surprise). When I contested the fact the 'grievance' proceedure had not been followed, the biased 'appeal' which I recorded, revealed clear collusion between the Appeal Officer and HR!

 

Anyway, I remained stressed and off for a further 8 months (although meeting management monthly). When I started to feel a little better, I instructed management that I wanted to take my accrued A/L entitlement before returning (41 days). I was told I would have to be signed 'fit for work' before I could take my annual leave but research suggested otherwise and that employees off sick can still take their a/l. I also sent management the legal standing regarding sickness and annual leave.

 

Discussions ensued where my employers did not address the legal information I provided, would not allow me to take the holidays but instead offered me partial payment of A/L (31 days) with me then having to use my remaining A/L entitlement (and whole of the following year's entitlement) to prop up my phased return when came back to work. (Although I probably should have taken it in hindsight) I felt this was disability discrimination and this caused a 'stalemate' in the proceedings.

 

Fast forward another 12 months, (which includes a pregnancy and miscarriage) and continued sick leave, my employers left me languishing without addressing any of the legalities and a couple of weeks ago started Capability Hearing proceedings (which is 'on hold' due to pregnancy loss).

Okay this is the point of major interest folks...

 

I was scoping the site for Personal Injury information for Stress at Work just last week, but there has now been a major announcement from my employers that they are cutting their workforce and are seeking candidates for Voluntary Severance btwn 6 Dec - 25 Jan 2013. It seems the best way to go now to cut my losses having been through a horrendous 3 years but I need to know the following:

• Can I request my outstanding A/L 41 days from 2010/11 tax year? (I also have an email where they said they would pay me the entire 41 days by 31 March 2011 - but the did not)
  

 

• Can I also request the accrued A/L from April 2012 (before I apply for the Voluntary Severance)
  

OR will they be within their rights to say that I cannot take any of the A/L if I'm planning on taking the Voluntary Severance as it might give me some 'unfair financial advantage'.

• Do you think I can I negotiate this or will I not have a legal leg to stand on?
  

 

• Might they even reject my application for Voluntary Severance and proceed with the Capability Hearing if I push this too far?
  

 

• Also, if I've been off sick for the best part of 2 years, when they calculate the Voluntary Severance package (which last time was 3 weeks for every year) will they reduce or negate the last 2 years as I have not been at work?
  

I have read the ACAS info - yes, but am not with the Union as they shafted me (sided with management) over the earlier trouble so I can't really guage where I stand with all this.

 

Sorry its been a long, detailed post but I'm hoping I can get some advice on this!!

Thanks!!

 

[MARTIN3030]

Welcome to the site.

Given that its Sunday as well as late,there are not many of our regular posters active,but you should get some responses tomorrow,so please be patient.

[ericsbrother]

You are entitled to your A/L so if you are currently working you can take it by giving the notice required in the EU working time directive. If you are not working and getting paid anyway it will be counted in your annual salary. If you do take the severence get them to add it to your payment in lieu of notice period. If you are/have not been paid then you are entitled to the money. With regard to the long term sickness, it depends on whether you have been paid during the absence as it should count but may be considered as deferred employment. ( a bit like unpaid leave of absence where you acrue no benefits but they let you return to your job on the terms you were on ). That would be unusual for illness but common for having a year off to go to college etc.

I reckon they will be glad to give you a couple of months pay on top of your severance as a final settlement for any outstanding claims you may have against them to ensure that it stays away from an ET.

[geishagirl257]

Thanks for that ericsbrother. I'm chipping away piece by piece.

 

They just agreed today to pay me the outstanding 41 days annual leave that they owed me over 2011/12 leave year (yes witheld for that long!) which I'm extremely relieved about! I will now ask about annual leave from the current leave year for 2012/13 as that has accrued since April 2012.

 

I was also wondering as I've been off for a long time (but the issues were complicated and court-case worthy but it has shattered me) whether they might deduct/not pay for that period of sickness when they calculate the Voluntary Redundancy package they offer me?

 

Does sick leave amount to incompleted years of service? Any thoughts would be useful. Thanks

Edited December 7, 2012 by geishagirl257
made some mistakes in original post